‘Govt poised to fix economy’
A Deputy Minister of Finance, Mr Kwaku Kwarteng, has reiterated the government’s commitment to build a stable economy with strong macro-economic fundamentals that offer long-term stability and protect the value of financial assets in the country.
He named some measures being taken to achieve that objective as deficit reduction, creation of fiscal space and gradual reduction of inflation.
“The government is poised to fix the economy to improve the livelihood of Ghanaians,” he said.
Mr Kwarteng made the assertions at the launch of Allianz Life Insurance Ghana Limited in Accra.
Launch
The event was attended by government officials, the French Ambassador to Ghana, Mr Francois Pujolas, heads of diplomatic missions, representatives from the National Insurance Commission (NIC), business executives and the members of the management of Allianz Africa, the parent company of Alianz Insurance Ghana Limited.
The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Allianz Africa, Mr Coenraad Vrolijk, in an address, said Ghana was a fast growing economy as such, the company was not only present in the country as an insurance company but that it was ready to invest in the economy, particularly in infrastructural development.
He added that the company would also focus on the insurance needs of its clients with specific emphasis on digitisation.
“We are here to bring investments in infrastructure and other types of capital investment to expand the economy,” he said.
According to Mr Vrolijk, Ghana was Africa’s success story, which is ‘’why we are motivated to increase our investment here in Ghana.“
He said Ghana was a hub of innovations and so his organisation would try new ideas in mobile and information and communication technology (ICT).
“Ghana is the place we will try new innovations in I.T and mobile technology,” he stressed.
Top Five
The CEO of Allianz Ghana, Mr Patrick Prado, stated that his outfit was poised to take the market by storm and would strive to be among the top five insurance companies in Ghana.
The company, he said, hoped to achieve its target through the establishment of a robust agency force, strong brand visibility and effective communication.
“Each of our products comes with options that enable us to tweak them to our customers’ lifestyles and needs.
Allianz Life Ghana is introducing relevant and cutting-edge technology into our operations to give our valued customers a superb customer experience,” he said.
Insurance market growing
In his remarks, the Deputy Commissioner of NIC, Mr Michael Andoh, said the total premium volumes of the life insurance market in Ghana had grown steadily over the years.
He noted that from 2013 to date, the industry had averaged an annual growth rate of 23 per cent.
He said the financial services sector worldwide was becoming digitised and that implementation of the interoperability of payment systems in the country was expected to have a significant impact on the financial services ecosystem.
“The future belongs to firms that are quickly able to realign and adapt to take advantage of the digital revolution,” he said.
The Minister of Business Development, Dr Ibrahim Mohammed Awal, said it was time for the insurance industry to evolve and adapt to how people lived in both the real and digital worlds.
“Times have changed, people want more out of life, they want an ally in achieving their dreams and that means a different way of doing business,” he pointed out.
He urged the company to cause a paradigm shift in insurance by strengthening the industry with its experiences.